Author/blogger/screenwriter/funny lady Alisa Valdes, reported on her blog today that she recently found out she’s a Chicana, fur realz. If you’ve ever read any of her books ( The Dirty Girls’ Social Club, Make Him Work, and Playing With Boys) this shouldn’t come as a surprise. Alisa, who hails from New Mexico and has thus far considered herself to be Cuban-American because of her father, found out through researching her family tree that she can officially add another hyphen into the mix. According to family lore from her mother’s side, her great-grandmother had roots that could be traced back all the way to the Spanish royalty. Turns out, that’s not exactly the way it went down. She writes:

“I have indeed traced her family to Spain, to a wealthy young man who came to Santa Fe and married a woman from the San Ildefonso (San Yldefonso on the marriage license) pueblo. That means his wife was Native American. From that point forward, the family tree merges many times with families from Mexico City, Chiapas, and Zacatecas, as well as with “Spanish” families from Northern New Mexico. In other words, my mother’s father was Mexican, whether he liked it or not.”

Congratulations, Alisa. Your complimentary Frida Kahlo brow enhancer, George Lopez DVD collection, and “My family went to Atzlan and all I got was this pinche t-shirt” t-shirt will be arriving in the mail shortly.